talisman
/ˈtæl.ɪsˌmæn/ noun, verb
Forms talismans talismen talismaning talismanning talismaned talismanned
- noun A magical object providing protection against ill will, or the supernatural, or conferring the wearer with a boon such as good luck, good health, or certain powers.
- verb (transitive) To adorn with a talisman.
- noun (India, obsolete) A mullah (Islamic religious scholar).
Synonyms
Etymology
From French talisman, partly from Arabic طِلَّسْم (ṭillasm, “payment”), from Ancient Greek τέλεσμα (télesma, “payment”); and partly directly from Byzantine Greek τέλεσμα (télesma, “talisman, religious rite, completion”), from τελέω (teléō, “to perform religious rites, to complete”), from τέλος (télos, “end, fulfillment, accomplishment, consummation, completion”). Doublet of telesm.
Uncertain. Perhaps a corruption of some Arabic word.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A magical figure cut or engraved under certain superstitious observances of the configuration of the heavens, to which wonderful effects are ascribed; the seal, figure, character, or image, of a heavenly sign, constellation, or planet, engraved on a sympathetic stone, or on a metal corresponding to the star, in order to receive its influence.
- noun Hence, something that produces extraordinary effects, esp. in averting or repelling evil; an amulet; a charm; as, a talisman to avert diseases. Swift.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “talisman”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details